Monday, 30 June 2014

On Monday, the Mainichi Shimbun newspaper's Mantan Web site debuted a promotional video for the two-hour anime specialMeitantei Conan: Edogawa Conan Shissō Jiken ~Chijō Saiaku no Futsukakan~ (Detective Conan: The Disappearance of Conan Edogawa: The Worst Two Days in History).

Text: "This is how you write mysteries!" ...Is what I felt I learned once again! —CreatorGosho AoyamaText: I hope that my love toward Conan reaches everyone watching. —Scriptwriter Kenji UchidaText: 20th Anniversary of Conan's SerializationMan: Conan Edogawa, I will steal everything of yours.Conan: ...!? Oh no!!Text: Detective Conan: The Disappearance of Conan Edogawa: The Worst Two Days in HistoryRan: Conan! Let's go to the bath house together!Conan: The person we encountered at the bath house we went to was a legendary hitman.Text: Legendary Hitman Conan: Hey, what'd you hide away?Conan: There is an unbelievable plot being concealed.Conan: A powerful tag team with members from different dimensions is born!Text: Original Work - Gosho Aoyama, Scripts - Kenji Uchida. A tag team with members from different dimensions is born!Conan: Detective Conan and Kagi Dorobō no Method have a miraculous collaboration! A wonderful cast members continue to join the fray!Ran: Conan is-Ai: Missing!?Agasa: Where did he go!?Conan: The worst day in Conan's history is beginning!Mōri: It's finally my turn!Ai: This is bad! Conan!Text: Conan has amnesia!?Conan: An anime special celebrating 20 years of Detective Conan's manga serialization!Detective Conan: The Disappearance of Conan Edogawa: The Worst Two Days in HistoryConan: ...Who am I...?

The anime special will celebrate the 20th anniversary of Gosho Aoyama's original manga. Kenji Uchida, the director of the critically acclaimed comedy film Kagi Dorobō no Method (Key of Life)and a Detective Conan fan, wrote this story about Conan losing his memories. Yasuichiro Yamamoto, the chief director of the Detective Conan television anime and the director of several previous movies and videos in the franchise, is helming this new special.

On Monday June 30, Manga Entertainment will release One Piece: Strong World (right) on both Blu-ray and DVD. The tenth anime film based on Eiichiro Oda's One Piece pirate manga opened in Japan in December 2009. Oda personallyoversaw this film's production. In the film, the Straw Hat pirates travel back to East Blue and battle the legendary pirate Shiki after he kidnaps Nami.

Manga Entertainment will also release a 'Complete Collection' edition of the science-fiction seriesSteins;Gate (left), on both Blu-ray and DVD. In the series, Rintaro Okabe is a self-proclaimed "mad scientist" who believes that an international scientific organization named SERN is conspiring to reshape the world according to its own interests. He inadvertently creates a gadget able to send messages to the past.

Also on Monday, MVM will release the series We, Without Wings (right). The anime is based on an adult visual novel by NAVEL, the original creators of Shuffle! and Soul Link. We, Without Wings follows three protagonists through different times of day. They are the timid Takashi, who dreams of escaping to an alternate world, part-timer Shuusuke who works at a local cafe, and handyman Hayato. All three are interlinked somehow but to what extent is only revealed over time.

MVM will also release a Blu-ray edition of the OAVepisodes of Girls und Panzer (left), released on DVD earlier in June.

It has been 15 years since Digimon Adventure hit television screens, giving children everywhere the dream that they too could one day have their own digital monster companion. Having been based off of the virtual pet toy of the same name, Digimon has spread to become a multimediafranchise, covering trading card, manga, and video games. Now, to celebrate their successful 15 years thus far, Akiyoshi Hongo, Bandai of Japan, and Toei Animation have released a number of goods which will be going on sale for fans of Digimon the world over.

Specifically, this week they have revealed a line of items which serve as an homage to Beelzemon, one of the baddest Digimon around. First up, there is the official Beelzemon replica jacket. With a detachable fur collar and Beelzemon symbols on both arms, this jacket resembles the one that the antihero Digimon sports at all times, and comes in 3 sizes: Small, Medium, and Large. The jacket runs a hefty tab of 108,000 yen (about US $1059.76), but definitely carries the quality for it.

In addition to this, Bandai has also made a Beelzemon leather card case, perfect for adding a little edge to your business or credit cards. This case is made of 100% Italian leather, making this another high quality buy. This card case bears the emblem of Beelzemon pressed into its leather cover and will be put up for sale at the price of 9,180 yen (about US $90.10).

Bandai has also announced the official Beelzemon T-shirt. Displaying Beelzemon's emblem across the wearer's chest, this shirt will sold for a total 3,240 yen (about US $31.80), and can be seen below with the official Digimon bar mat (Rookie version), which will be on sale soon as well for 3,085 yen (about US $30.27).

What would happen if the national legislature was composed entirely of idols? One thing's for sure: it would be a whole lot better-looking. As for the political implications, we'll have to wait for the upcoming fall release of the RPG Idol Jihen (Idol Incidents) by 5pb. (Steins;Gate, Chaos;HEAd). Details are sparse, but it seems that the legislature in this game has 47 idols, one from each Japanese prefecture. Your goal is to sponsor one and guide her to the prime ministership.

The Fairy Girls story will focus on the two "strongest girls in the world." The series will launch in this year's 12th issue ofKodansha's Magazine Special on November 20.

In Fairy Tail Blue Mistral, Wendy — as a 12-year-old magical girl — will face the secrets of the dragon valley. Weekly Shōnen Magazine also hints that Wendy may find love in this "Episode #0" story. The manga will launch in the September issue ofKodansha's shōjo magazine Nakayoshi on August 2.

The first issue of theMonthly Fairy Tailmagazine shipped on June 17 with a Fairy Tail Zero spinoff manga centering on the original Master Mavis. Four special one-shot manga chapters also ran in fourKodansha magazines this spring.

Filming for the series 8 finale has continued and it has revealed that the Cybermen and UNIT will return for the finale, alongside Michelle Gomez playing the Gatekeeper of the Nethersphere. Kate Strward and Osgood are also returning, and can be seen in the first picture.

More pictures will be added as they are uploaded.Update: It's been said that the Daleks are there too. We're currently waiting on more people to confirm and images.

The BBC have announced that Michelle Gomez (Bad Education, Green Wing) will star in Series 8, as filming continues this morning, playing the Gatekeeper of the Nethersphere.Speaking about the role, Michelle Gomez said: "Well of course Peter Capaldi is our next Doctor, which makes complete sense. I'm thrilled to join him. Well, you would be wouldn't you?"Lead writer and executive producer, Steven Moffat, added: “I've known Michelle for years, and I'm thrilled to welcome her to Doctor Who. She's everything we need - brilliant, Scottish, and a tiny bit satanic.”

Big Finish Productionshave announced they will be bringing backThe Raniin a new story byJustin Richards, as part of their ongoing series of Audio adventures based onDoctor Who.The Rani was originally played byKate O'Marain two stories shown in the 1980's,The Mark of the RaniandTime and the Rani. She was created byPip and Jane Bakeras a renegade Time Lord, an amoral scientist who sees no limit to her research.The return was suggested by O'Mara who told Big Finish she would love to reprise the role for the company. ProducerDavid Richardsonsays

Her agent contacted me and said that she would love to reprise the role with us, and when I mentioned this to executive producer Nicholas Briggs and script editor Alan Barnes they leapt at the opportunity. Justin wrote The Rani Elite for us, and we were just a few weeks away from recording when the terrible news reached us that Kate had passed away. At first, we were not sure what to do – until Kate’s agent again got in touch again, and said that it had been Kate’s wish that we proceed with a new incarnation of the Rani.

The role will now be played bySiobhan Redmond, whose many leading television credits includeBetween the Lines,The High Life,The Smoking Room,TaggartandHolby City.

We’d worked with Siobhan a few months ago as a different character in Revenge of the Swarm, and we fell in love with her. She’s a smart, delightful person and also an amazing actress – she’s the perfect choice for this new, slightly different version of the Rani.

The Rani's return comes at the end of a new trilogy of stories exploring what happened to Peri Brown during and afterThe Trial of a Time Lord. In the 1986 storyMindwarp, Peri was killed, but later inThe Ultimate Foeit was explained that she actually married to the warrior Yrcanos.So what really happened?The mystery is addressed in an set of adventures starringColin Bakeras the Sixth Doctor andNicola Bryantas Peri. It begins in October withThe Widow's AssassinbyNev Fountain, which takes up Peri's story a few years after trial, as the Doctor and his former companion are reunited.November's release isMasters of EarthbyMark WrightandCavan Scott, which, as the title hints, features the return of the Daleks and the Robomen, and is set during the Dalek occupation of Earth in the 22nd Century.The trilogy ends in December with The Rani Elite, which sees the debut of Siobhan Redmond as the evil Time Lord.The three stories are available to pre-order individually or as part of the discounted subscription deal.

Tenth Planet Eventsare holding a special event and auction to raise money forDenville Hall, a home for elderly members of the theatrical profession.Items in the auction range from several signedBig Finishscripts and Doctor Who posters through to a a private dinner for ten withLalla Wardand her husbandRichard Dawkins, and the chance to spend a day with Big Finish.The Auction is now availableonlineuntil midnight (BST) onAugust 8th2014.

The BBC has confirmed Doctor Who will return on Saturday 23rd August 2014

The series will premiere with a feature-length episodeDeep Breath.No time has yet been confirmed for the BBC One Transmission, howeverBBC Americahave confirmed they will show the episode at8pm ET.SPACEin Canada have also confirmed it will show the episode that evening as hasFOXin Germany.ABC Australiahave confirmed the series will début downunder onSunday 24th August.

Am I a good man? BBC One trailer, via YouTubeAm I a good man? BBC America trailer, via YouTube (North America only)

Friday, 27 June 2014

While the soccer-watching world has been keeping an eye on Uruguay forward Luis Suárez, whose hunger for victory has earned him a nine match, four month suspension, teammate Walter Gargano has been dazzling the otakusphere in other ways. Namely, the proud display of hisDragon Ball Z shinguards.

Midfielder Gargano posted a photo to his Instagram account two days ago, prompting a flurry of excited reactions to his equipment choice.

Gargano last played in Uruguay's June 14 match against Costa Rica where they lost 3-1. The team's next match will be on June 28 against Colombia.

The Premium Bandai shop opened a product page for its 15th anniversary edition Digivice toy release.

The website doesn't reveal outright which Digimon characters' Digivices will be released, but the image shows the Crest of Courage (Taichi "Tai" Kamiya) and Crest of Friendship (Yamato "Matt" Ishida) symbols. The Digivice toys are a reprint, but Bandai promises they "underwent a super evolution!"

The actual product will be revealed on July 19 before it ships in December. Preorders will open on August 1.

The franchise is also getting the Digimonstory Cybersleuth PlayStation Vita game next year. You can catch episodes of the Digimon Fusion anime on The CW Network's Vortexx Saturday morningblock.

Bandai's creepy, yet alluringly majestic, transforming robot toy version of Osaka's Taiyō no Tō(Tower of the Sun) now has a video to match, featuring a dramatic orchestral score and beam cannon eyes.

This transforming monument stands at approximately 288 mm (about 11.33") tall when fully transformed, and is made from ABS in a die-cast mold. It has three different phases: the traditional tower form, the upright robot form, and the fully operational and weaponized form.

The toy will be released September 27, and will retail for 18,360 yen (about US$180.25) after tax. It can be pre-ordered on Amazon and AmiAmi.

The Tower of the Sun was originally built for the World Fair hosted in Osaka as their Expo '70. The tower originally housed a gallery of artwork that was open to the public during the expo, but closed shortly after the event. In October 2003, the tower was reopened to a total of 1,970 people who had been selected by the Commemorative Organization for the Japan World Exposition. It was then opened on irregular occasions until its re-closing in 2006. Despite this, the tower is scheduled to be reopened to the public this year after the completion of its ongoing renovations.

There is an event timetable here. The schedule includes a Voice Actors Q&A at 6 p.m. on Saturday, and a Maggie O'Hara Q&A at 2 p.m. on Sunday. O'Hara will also do a free signing session from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Sunday.

The schedule also includes a Q&A (Sunday 1 p.m.), about the British fan film Wolf Girl, inspired by Hayao Miyazaki's Princess Mononoke. The project raised £29,000 on Kickstarter last year.

The convention is for over-18s only. The Anime side of the convention will take place at its normal venue at the Rocket Complex near Holloway Road Tube Station (directions). The Gaming events will be held in the building next door (the London Metropolitan University).

Tickets are available online until Tuesday July 1, costing £19 for both days, £11 for Saturday or £8 for Sunday.

Tickets will also be available on the door: £13 for Saturday and £10 for Sunday.